


when love was fast and we were us

by bella_sprezzatura



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Criminals, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Long Live Feedback Comment Project, Lovers to enemies to lovers, Quite a bit of swearing, Working with the Ex, marauders & co are criminals but they are not the bad guys, nothing too heavy though, saving the world reluctantly, sexual content is only implied/alluded to, some violence coz they're criminals, sort of like a suicide squad type thing?, took a level in badass, unwilling teammates gradually grow on each other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-17
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:06:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25105912
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bella_sprezzatura/pseuds/bella_sprezzatura
Summary: Lily Evans. Desert Flower. Mistress of Deceit. Killer of Men.The Marauders. Moony, Padfoot, & Prongs. Not Wormtail. The best thieves there ever were. Especially experienced escape artists. Current jailbreaks stand at 17.Nymphadora Tonks. Tech witch with a particular fondness for trouble.The Weasley Twins. Explosive Experts. Pyrotechnic Professionals. Volatile Virtuosos."You pulled us out of prison to do what?"Being good sucks.
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Remus Lupin/Nymphadora Tonks
Comments: 22
Kudos: 29





	1. the struggle of staying above the rising water line

**Author's Note:**

> i set myself a bit of a challenge to write this one, so I'm not really sure where it's going or how much of it i will write. but hopefully you like it! please let me know what you think xx
> 
> (work title from keith urban's 'we were us'. coz this is a love story, folks)
> 
> (chapter one title from kacey musgraves' 'rainbow')

"Where the bloody hell are we?"

"This facility is the London Headquarters for the Order of The Phoenix. We are a covert paramilitary operation that functions at the discretion of Her Majesty's government."

"And why exactly are we here?"

"I have been tasked with preparing a black ops strike team to take down the Death Eaters. I believe that each of you possess the necessary skills and relevant history to do what we require."

"You pulled us out of prison to do _what_?"

"I think you know exactly what. Are you in?"

"We're in. We are so fucking in."

* * *

They sit and they wait. McG is waiting on one last person and then her strike team will be complete. So far she has Tonks, Weasley, Weasley, Moony, Padfoot, and Prongs. All that's left is… Evans.

"Director. She's here."

The doors to their underground fortress swing open. Lily Evans stalks down the hallway to get to them, leaving the agents that brought her well behind. Every single one of McG's men watches her as she passes. That is how beautiful and commanding she is and always has been.

There is a bright, blooming lily plastered across the back of the leather jacket she wears. The thump of her combat boots against the concrete floor stops abruptly when she halts in front of the director. Her red hair is flaming about her face, her fair skin is in such deep contrast to her all-black ensemble. McG has long since stopped caring how she manages to acquire such garments in a maximum security prison. She already knows it was through no legal course of action, so it is better not to ask.

"You're looking well, Director. It's been a while."

"That it has, Miss Evans. Behaving yourself, I hope?"

"Well, I do try. But you know how it is…" Lily trails off, looking around at the facility. She starts to clock the agents, search for the exits, memorise the layout. She flashes a quick wink to the guards that stand to her side. But McG is quick to shut it down.

"I will not tolerate any misconduct during this posting. Do I make myself clear, Miss Evans?"

"Crystal clear, Director," she says, but it does not seem one bit sincere. Before she can question her again, Lily shifts the conversation to the issue at hand. "Involving the wains, are we?"

"Only the smartest ones. Miss Evans, meet The Weasley Twins." These so-called Weasley Twins, Lily has never met before. They look far too young, far too _new_. She does not know them, but they know her. They almost always do.

"You're Lily Evans? The Desert Flower?"

"Mistress of Deceit? Killer of Men?"

"Yeah, that's me."

They look at her with a strange reverence, as though they are unsure whether to be filled with wonder or terror. "Oh, it is an honour," one of them says.

"Pleasure's all mine, fellas."

"And of course, you know Miss Tonks."

"Hiya, Dora."

"Hiya, Lil."

Lily looks over to her. They all wear detention-issue jumpsuits. Typically; blue is for juvenile detention, grey is for male or female prisons, and black is for maximum security. Tonks is now wearing grey. "I heard you graduated from juvenile hall," she says, rather impressed with her old friend.

"Yeah, that's right. I'm playin' with the big girls now."

"Congrats." Lily holds out her fist and Tonks knocks hers to it.

"And you remember The Marauders." Lily turns back to the director so abruptly, so shockingly, that her hair whips through the air. She faces McG, a look of utmost betrayal on her face as she stares at the woman she has begun to trust. 

"Alright, Evans?" It _is_ him. She would know his voice anywhere.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," she says. McG does display a hint of remorse for this elaborate deceit. Lily had been informed some days ago of the director's plan to bring her and a select few others together to form this strike team, but she had not known who specifically would be involved. Even then, she had not ever assumed it would be _them_. This is why Lily feels so wounded now, because McG did not tell her that they would be here. If she had, then Lily would not have allowed herself to be brought here so easily.

"Nice to see you too, Evans." They are sitting at the far end of the long table and are somewhat obscured by the shadows. This is why she had not noticed them before. But as soon as he speaks, as soon as he calls to her, someone hits the lights and now the three of them are in plain view. She does not look over to them. She refuses out of spite alone.

She forces her eyes closed, her lashes flutter with the effort she takes to remain calm.

"I'm not doing this. Not with them. Not with _him_."

"Um… Do you guys know each other or something?" The twins are throwing their heads back and forth between them. Lily and Prongs are at two opposite heads of the table and as the tension between them builds, it is clear that, yes, they do know each other. The new kids are eager to know more about whatever it is that is going on, that much is easy to see. Tonks signals for them to cut it out by slicing her hand through the air. They immediately shut up. When Lily abruptly turns her head to her friend, she pretends she is swatting a fly. Tonks smiles innocently when Lily narrows her eyes.

"C'mon, Evans! Didn't you miss us at all, love?"

"Fuck off, Padfoot."

At this, she finally turns to look at them. Prongs sits in the middle, forearms resting on the table. He winks at her and a cocky smile graces his fine features. But she can see that he is wired, heat has risen to his cheeks and his legs urgently bounce up and down under the table. The other two flank him, just as they always do. She gives herself a second to observe them. It has been years and they look different. She supposes that she does too.

"Well! That's a bit harsh, innit? I'm only trying to be friendly."

"Friendly? After all this, after everything, you want to be _friendly_? You've got to be fucking kidding me."

Her and Padfoot go a few rounds. They lock horns, something they never used to do. But, things are different now. And then Lily, the sassy bitch, kicks into gear.

"Hmm, let's see," she starts. "One, two, three…" She counts them out loud, pointing to each of them in turn and pretending to be perplexed. "There's Moony and Padfoot, and that's Prongs… Hold on a moment, fellas. Where's Wormtail?" She smiles maliciously and there is an evil, chaotic glint in her eye. She is being unnecessarily malevolent in bringing up old wounds. Or perhaps it is completely justified, on account of the fact that they do deserve it.

"Wait, who is Wormtail?" One of the new kids wonders aloud. None of them respond.

"Low blow, Evans. Low blow." Padfoot painfully expresses, shaking his head at her. He had intended to bait her but did not expect this sort of backlash. Moony does not say anything, he just continues to look down into his clenched hands. Prongs is gazing at her now. They lock eyes and he softens. And then she has to force herself to turn away, to remember that she is furious with him. With all of them.

He can look at her that way all he likes but she will not be swayed. This is the end of it, for now. Lily turns back to the director who has been standing beside her, silently scrutinising them. "I won't do it," Lily tells her, with just as much certainty as before.

The director knows she must take a different tact with Lily. The Marauders are intent to contribute for it will fulfil their desire for revenge. And they know this is the only way they will get it. The Weasley Twins are simply stoked to be involved, so of course, they will agree to anything she asks. And Tonks, she doesn't much care. She is all in because she is otherwise bored out of her mind. But Lily, she is a unique case. And the director knows exactly what to say to convince her.

"Do you want to spend the rest of your life in jail?” McG asks her. Of course she does not, she hates it there.

The director continues on, looking only at her. Lily is the most important asset, they cannot move on if she does not agree. “If you do this for me, we might just be able to come to an agreement regarding your incarceration.”

Lily is quick to reply. The implication is there, if she agrees to be a part of this team, if she does what she is supposed to do... Well, maybe McG might just let her out. “Swear it?”

“On my word, Miss Evans.”

Lily does not say anything, she does not need to. They stare at each other for some time, each of them bearing their eyes into the cold soul of the other. McG can sense her concession before Lily herself knows she will give it. This alludes to their significant history, that which the director honours revealingly with her offer.

Lily throws her head back and exhales stormily. She crosses her arms over her chest and treads heavily across the concrete floor before throwing herself into a chair at the table. McG does not gloat at this small victory nor does Lily protest it. They are in accordance and nothing more shall be said about it.

"Director, I have that information you asked for." McG steps back to confer with her subordinates. "Stay right here, all of you," she warns.

Tonks is to Lily's left, they sit close together. Needless to say, she is the only person at that table who Lily truly trusts. “Heard you’ve been spendin' a lot o' time in the hole?” She asks her. Lily nods. They have known each other a long time. Dora knows how much she hates to be in solitary confinement. “Word got 'round about the sod you stabbed last week, how long did they give ya?”

“The full 50 hours, so it was. That’s still as much as is technically allowed at any one time.”

She sees the new kids retract. “You stabbed someone?” One of them asks her in a hurried whisper from across the table. They are clearly perturbed. She can see it in the way they look at her, suddenly afraid of what she might do. They are so very clearly out of their depth that Lily wonders what possible value McG could have assigned to them.

“I _lightly_ stabbed him. And he definitely deserved it.”

"What do you mean 'he'? I thought they'd placed you in the women's prison?" Moony speaks for the first time, and is that genuine concern for her in his voice?

She shoots him another evil glare but it is the director who answers him. She is back at the head of the table, and is looking through an iPad of information. "Miss Evans is in a secure experimental facility," she replies casually.

"What the bloody hell does that mean?"

"It means we are experimenting with different forms of incarceration, including coed prisons."

"But is it safe?"

"They reckon the safest thing to do is to keep people like me all in the same place," Lily replies to the room at large, not looking in Moony's general direction although he continues to be the one asking the questions.

She hates it in prison. _Hates_ it. But The Marauders love it, they are thriving. They are the one true prison gang and everybody is their bitch. Needless to say they do not understand what it is like for her. To be surrounded by some of the worst people to have ever walked the earth, to have to do the things she does just to survive in that hellhole? They'd never understand. They are doing this for revenge, she is doing it so she _never_ has to go back.

"People like you?"

"Killers."


	2. don't look too deep into those angel eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((chapter title title from abba's 'angeleyes' - feel free to listen to the songs i get the titles from coz they each correspond to what's happening in the chapter!))))
> 
> thanks so much for all the feedback!! hope you enjoy xx :)

McG finishes briefing them. The instruction is clear. Find the Death Eaters.

The possibility of a legal apprehension is no longer on the table. The British government must widen their approach. The powers at be may not fancy involving some of Britain's worst criminals in the takedown, but they no longer have any choice in the matter. Director McG has been given complete authority in this mission and for this strike team and she is of sound mind about it. This is what must be done. And they will begin in the morning. For now, they rest.

McG guides them onto the rest of the facility. "We're stayin' here?" Tonks asks her.

The director turns abruptly to face them and they all stop walking immediately. "Yes, you will be staying here," she says warningly. Except, she is not directing her tone to Tonks but to The Marauders. They are looking at the director with such purposefully innocent eyes. As if they weren't just casing the joint, searching for weaknesses, routes for escape. But they had been, and Lily had seen them doing it. And maybe the director had sensed it too.

McG purses her lips. "I will say this to you now and I will not be repeating myself. You are to s _tay here_ in this facility. If you attempt to escape, all negotiations will be forfeited."

This seems to have done it. They look appropriately chastised. The director herself is very good at reprimanding these boys as she has been at it for a long time. But for now, whatever it is that she has promised them in their journey for revenge is too much for them to risk.

"Now. Follow me, all of you." McG walks on and the rest of them follow, Lily brings up the rear. While McG is busy monitoring the others, she takes her chance. A handful of other agents move into step just beside her. They look young and newly arrived. _Perfect_. She shifts herself, walks delicately, and smiles prettily at them. Her honey trap catches one of them, and he smiles back at her.

"Hi there. I'm Lily." She speaks sweetly and softly to him. Her eyes are kind and she is beaming.

"I know who you are," the young agent chuckles. She checks him, searches for what she is looking for while he is staring at her darling face. He wonders, as they all do, how an angel like this could ever do anything wrong.

He carries a few guns and other such tactical weapons. His bullet proof vest has a few pockets and she can soon see the outline of what she is looking for. His phone. "Of course you do," she lets out a breathy laugh, pretending to chide herself. "But see, now I don't know your name."

"It's Agent Barlow, Miss Evans."

She moves closer to him. "Agent Barlow, so it is. Tell me, what's a good-looking fella like you doing in a place like this?" He laughs, and her nimble fingers make the lift. He does not notice. "I could ask you the same question, Miss Evans."

She smiles brilliantly at him. They start to separate. McG is leading them one way while the agents go the other. "Lovely talking with you, Agent Barlow," she sends him off with a wink. He blushes and smiles to himself when he thinks no one can see, but she can.

Lily clenches her jaw and rolls her eyes. She had barely tried and he was putty in her hands. She lets go of the sweetheart routine for it is no longer necessary. She has what she wants. She quickly puts the young agent's phone into her pocket. She ruffles her hair and cocks the collar of her jacket before placing her hands in the pockets. No one has seen what she has done, what she has taken. She shifts again and turns her attention back to the director. They pass the armoury and the hospital wing. And as they keep walking, there is more: the director's office, training yard, garage, library, research lab…

Then there is an open plan area which looks like it might be a kitchen. She follows the others and rounds the corner only to almost walk right into _him_.

"Alright, Evans?"

She wonders for a moment if he has seen her snatch the phone. But he couldn't have, despite his natural talent for thievery he is blind in more ways than one. He has his arms crossed over his chest and is leaning against the wall. He is always leaning, as though he can barely manage to keep himself upright. It is an extremely attractive lean but she will not let herself think about _that_.

This is the first time they have been this close in a long while. She smells just as he remembers. The scent floats from her as it always did. Maybe she is not much changed, after all. He lets himself revel in the feeling.

She tries not to look at him too closely. He seems to have no such issue and so, lets his eyes trail up and down her body. This promises only to exacerbate her problem.

The jumpsuit does nothing for her figure, she is drowning in it. His eyes linger on the leather jacket, there is a patch missing from the left-side shoulder. Right above her heart. She has ripped it off.

His eyes roam over her still and she gets the distinct impression he is memorising her all over again. When he reaches her eyes she has no power to look away. She knows her own eyes are quite simply her best feature. They are a brilliant green, like she has oceans in her eyes. But his, they are a beautiful hazel that stand out against the bronze of his skin and the coal of his hair. They are warm and kind and golden.

She knows if she looks for too long at him in this way, she will lose all her resolve. And she mustn't. She is too angry to give in to him so easily. He smiles charmingly and lifts an eyebrow at her. "Nice jacket," he says.

"I don't want to talk to you," she says.

"Come on, love. You can't seriously be angry with me."

"Move out of the way before I make you," she says, this time with more force of will. He does not move. He stares boldly into her eyes and she furrows her brow. He is so much taller than her and so is practically hunched over to look at her this way. He is too close and she does not like it. But she will not let him sway her.

And then, he smirks at her. That stupid smirk which she has always hated. He winks and then he moves. She can walk past him now and she moves quickly so as to be as far away from him as possible. They join the rest of the group which has come to halt beside a narrow and winding staircase.

"These stairs lead to the dormitories," McG says. "You will find that some things have already been set up for you. Miss Tonks? The technical gear you requested is all there. You will have access to the internet only in the capacity which is required to get your work done and nothing more. Mr and Mr Weasley, your gear is also set up and ready for you. Messers Prongs, Padfoot, and Moony? We have brought here all the personal items you requested. Miss Evans, all your gear is in the armoury. Officers from Major Crimes at Scotland Yard have volunteered to supervise you during this mission and while my agents prepare a course of action. If there's anything you require please tell the Detective Inspector. If any of you disobey my orders, you will have to accept the consequences," she adds this last part on at the last second before she walks away, and they know she is serious. "We meet at 0700 hours. No excuses," she calls to them as she disappears around the corner.

"I do not enjoy bein' bossed 'round like that." Tonks says as they all climb the staircase. Lily stomps angrily as she goes. Still pissed off, she is.

When they reach the dormitory there are some suits guarding the door. "Everything you need is inside," one of them says. "We are going to be guarding these doors all night. We'll open them again at 0500," says the other one. And with that they are locked in. The heavy doors are pulled shut and the alarm beeps aggressively.

The dormitory itself is large and luxurious. There are those windows that aren't real windows, but still somehow show the setting sunlight even though they are underground. There are seven single beds separated by curtained partitions. On each bed are containers, suitcases, and bags full of their stuff. The beds are all nicely made and look much too comfortable compared to what they are all used to.

Tonks goes straight for the bed that must be hers because it is a bunk with a desk underneath. There is a computer (several, actually) plus all the tech gear she needs. She gets to work right away. The Weasley Twins go right for their bunk beds, the floor beside it is littered with all sorts of junk. Useful junk, apparently.

The Marauders go off to make sure all of their stuff is there. Lily takes one last cautious look at the door. Then she looks to Tonks. "Any cameras in here?" She asks her.

"Nah, did the once over already. There's none," she says. Lily thanks her and quickly whips the phone out from her pocket. She starts furiously typing out messages.

"Where did you get _that_?"

"Nicked it," she says to the twins. At their desperate looks, she says, "You boys can have it once I'm done. If there's someone you need to call?"

"We should call home."

"If that's alright with you?"

"O'course it is. Let me finish up, aye?"

"Who are you texting?" Padfoot asks her, like he has some sort of right to know. He's such a dick.

She throws the phone to one of the twins who catches it deftly. They move to the other end of the dorm to make their calls. "Fuck off, Padfoot," she says.

That just about does it. The other shoe drops, the dam breaks, shit hits the fan. However you want to say it, that's what happens.


	3. it might be over now, but i feel it still

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there is a lot going on in this one! i set myself another tricky challenge in this chapter, hope you like it xx
> 
> (feel it still by portugal. the man)

Padfoot has had just about enough. "For fucks sake, Evans! What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"Me?! What's wrong with _me_?!" Lily says. She moves closer to the three of them as she yells.

"Jesus Christ!! Will you just chill the fuck out for ONCE??" Padfoot yells right back at her.

"I will not!! Because you deserve every minute of it, so you do!!"

"We do NOT deserve the slanging match!!"

Moony runs his hand across his face, he is so tired of this. If he lets this go on much longer Lily and Padfoot may end up killing each other.

"You two! ENOUGH!" He yells, stepping between them with his arms held out. He doubts they will try to kill each other if he is standing between them. "For fucks sake, Prongs. Fix this, NOW," he says.

"She's only this bloody pissed off at us 'coz she's pissed off at you!" Padfoot says to Prongs.

Prongs rolls his eyes at his mates and then speaks directly to her. He walks right up to her and invades her personal space (again). "You can't be mad at me, I didn't do anything!!"

Lily's jaw drops. She cannot believe that she is hearing this. What bullshit. She steps back and stares at him widely before she rips off her jacket and throws it to the ground. She is _very_ angry.

"Uh oh. She's gonna kill 'im." Tonks cringes from her desk. She can see where this is going. The twins are in the corner of the room still, they have tried to call home but they cannot get through. It is very late and everyone must be sleeping.

To his own credit, Prongs looks a little afraid for what Lily might do. He knows better than anyone what she is capable of and how far she will go. Luckily, she only yells at him some more.

"Aye, but that's exactly it! You didn't _do_ anything!!"

"What are you talking about?! IT WASN'T ME!!"

"I KNOW THAT!! When they pinched you, they well publicised the trial. I know what Wormtail did!"

"Then why are you so mad at me?!"

"BECAUSE YOU-"

"YOU CAN'T BE MAD ME FOR SOMETHING I DIDN'T DO!!"

"ENOUGH!" Moony shrieks. He is so very tired of this. They stop yelling, heaving with the effort, the passion, the pain it has taken to keep this up. "Alright, maybe we should stop yelling at each other, yeah? Lil if you tell me to fuck off, I swear…" Moony adds that last bit because he sees the look in her eyes and knows that she is about to. She only glares at him instead.

Prongs doesn't say anything. He waits for her to speak. She cards her fingers through her hair before she does, it is longer than he has ever seen it. "I knew I'd eventually have to atone for my sins. And I knew that Scotland Yard and all them were coming for me. I just thought I'd have a little more time before they found me. I don't so much care for the circumstances behind it all. What Wormtail did or did not do is completely irrelevant to me. What matters is what _you_ did!"

"I already told you, I didn't fucking do anything! Wormtail was the one who called the coppers on you. He gave us up to them too! He was working for the Death Eaters and lying to us the whole bloody time! I had no idea about any of it!"

"I already told you I don't care about that. Do you not remember that last day at all? McG and her men came bursting through the door and they came straight for me! But you got away like you always do. You left me. And she took me away to that bloody prison. And I waited and waited for you to come for me but you never did. You left me!"

"I didn’t leave you! They took you from me!"

"But you didn't try to stop them!"

"What the fuck was he supposed to do, Evans? We had bigger things to deal with at the time! And need I remind you that we got pinched too," says Padfoot.

"Aye, but there was over a year between our arrests! And you know as well as I do that no prison has ever been able to hold the three of you for long."

"Lily, you have to understand…" Moony attempts to reason with her but she does not let him get far.

"I don't _have_ to do anything! And I'd really appreciate it if you two could get lost because this is none of your business." She waves her hand at them aggressively and they step back. Padfoot throws his hands in the air in defeat and Moony shuts his eyes because he is so done with this.

Prongs keeps going, he will not let her have the last say in any of this. "I remember that day perfectly! They came for you at my place, that meant they knew you'd be there. That meant someone had told McG and everyone about you and me and that the only way to get to you was to go through me!"

"What are you talking about?!" She stomps her heavy boots on the ground as she steps closer to him. They are face to face now, both of them are desperately stringing angry words together to hurl at one another.

"That day was a fucking wake up call, we had no evidence of a traitor until _that_ day. We were in deep shit so we had to go underground! So that I could figure out how they got to you!"

"Spare me the fucking heroics. I don't care about any of that! You _left_ me."

"Things got bad and we panicked! What would you have had me do, Evans?"

"I had so much faith in you. I had no idea how to escape from a place like that, but you! You always know! It would have been easier than lifting a finger for you to get me out. And when you never came I thought the worst had happened…" She trails off because she can’t quite figure out if she should tell him or not. But the words are right at the tip of her tongue, begging to be heard.

Questions from Padfoot and Moony come in quick succession.

"What do you mean?"

"What the fuck is she going on about now?"

And then she just blurts it out because cannot hold it in anymore.

"I thought you were dead!"

And with that she loses all of her resolve. The hard outer shell of the sheer force of her will has cracked and he can see her. Finally, he can see her. The sound of her voice is caterwauling across the concrete walls and it silences them all for a few minutes. When she speaks again it is much softer and she is holding back tears. "I tried to contact you, to get a message to you… I waited for you to come, like you promised you would. But you never did…" She looks to the floor, using her sleeve to wipe the escaping tears from her cheeks. "I thought you were dead," she whispers. She suddenly looks so delicate, like she may break into a thousand pieces at any second.

He softens. "I'm sorry, I never meant-"

She doesn't say anything. She just holds her hand up to him and he stops talking. Maybe she isn't really angry with him at all.

"You were the only real thing in my life," she says. "And I thought I had lost you forever."

Realisation dawns on Moony's face. "And then when they publicised our arrest…" He looks to Padfoot and sees his expression reflected back to him. She had thought Prongs was dead, that they were all dead. The last time she had seen them they were running for their lives, desperately trying to escape yet another capture. She had no way of knowing what had become of them that day. And when Prongs never came for her, she had expected the worse. She had assumed that only his death could keep him from her.

Almost two years passed, they were eventually apprehended. The British government had conquered them and they were not about to let it go unnoticed, so it was everywhere. That was when she realised that they had been alive all along.

Prongs reaches out to her. He wants to hold her so desperately. She retracts from him so quickly and violently, and it shatters him. He tries again and she slaps his hands away. "Don't touch me!"

"Lil, please…"

"You let me think you were dead! I tried everything to get a message to you! What the bloody hell was so important that you couldn't let me know you were alive? Or did you decide suddenly to not give a fuck about me anymore?"

Prongs is mildly offended at the implication. There is nothing on this earth or any other that could keep him from loving her. But she does not know this, his track record proves exactly the opposite.

If there had been a way to get a message to her, he would've… But there hadn't been. They were being watched and he was trying to protect her. By… keeping her in jail? The reasoning is not sound but there you have it. He tries to tell her this, to explain. "I couldn't, love. I already said. We were off the grid & blah blah blah…" He goes on but she has stopped listening. It is no use, it is too late. There is no way he is coming back from this.

"Just stop. I actually don't want to hear it anymore." Her voice wobbles and she isn't quite able to look him in the eye.

"Wait, Lil…" He reaches out his arm to hold her hand, to try to comfort her but she is too quick. She sidesteps him and rushes past. She heads straight for the bathrooms and slams the door behind her. The sound of it pierces the air and they are all silent as they let the sound hang heavy between them.

Prongs holds his head in his hands and exhales deeply. "What am I going to do?" He mumbles to himself. Tonks knows the answer to this question but she cannot tell him. She has been sworn to secrecy. She wouldn't do it anyways, telling him how to fix this would be cheating. So she sits there with wide eyes and pretends to be shocked by the exchange. She is not, she had seen it coming a long while away.

There is a chirping sound coming from the corner of the room. It cuts the silence like a knife and they all jump. The twins scramble over themselves to answer the call.

"Mum?! Hello, Mum??"

"Give me that! Mum, you there??"

"Yes! It's us!"

"No, we're alright… Mum! Mum, stop yelling!"

The others leave them to it and get on with their own business, now that the theatrics are over. Prongs, Padfoot, and Moony go to their separate stations and start looking over their gear. Lily is still locked away in the bathroom. Tonks is standing near her desk and fiddling with some power chords.  


"I might be needin' another set o' power sockets…" She says. "I ain't quite gettin' enough juice over here. Mind if I use that one?" Tonks points to the sockets that are on the opposite wall to her station. They are between Moony and Prongs, but she directs her attention to the former.

"Of course, whatever you need." Moony says, he has been too preoccupied and hasn't so much as looked at her properly. Her jumpsuit has been ripped and torn considerably but is mended with odd and colourful patchworks. She untangles all her plugs and chords and other bits and pieces.

Moony watches her as she goes. Padfoot gives him a smug look from Prongs' other side. He ignores him.

She bends down to the floor and starts doing her thing. When she is done she stands up and brushes her hands against her legs. She does not get far. She has accidentally tangled her feet around a chord or two so when she tries to take a step, she comes hurtling towards the ground. Moony takes a few swift steps to reach her.

Before she can make contact with the ground, she feels a set of strong arms catch her and all of a sudden he is dipping her as though they are dancing. She grabs onto his upper arms in instinct and then she is staring into his eyes. They are a beautifully pretty blue and he is smiling down at her.

"Are you alright?" He asks her. She nods and he rights her. His hands go from her waist to fix her sad excuse for a jumper, which has slipped off her shoulder in the shuffle. It is some sort of poorly concocted imitation wool blend that is meant to keep them warm and it is the same ugly grey of her jumpsuit. He wears the same… they match. "Thank you," she says, all out of breath.

He is all golden curly locks and genuine smiles. He is much too tall, even the jumpsuit disagrees with just how tall he is. She can see a good amount of his ankle where the cuffs don't quite reach. "It’s my pleasure, really," he says.

She smiles cheekily, it might just be the prettiest thing he has ever seen. "I'll keep that in mind next time I fall for you," she says.

**Author's Note:**

> This story is part of the [LLF Comment Project](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/llfcommentproject), which was created to improve communication between readers and authors. This author invites and appreciates feedback, including:
> 
> Feedback
> 
>   * Short comments
>   * Long comments
>   * Questions
>   * “<3” as extra kudos
>   * Reader-reader interaction
> 

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> This author replies to comments.
> 
> If you don’t want a reply, for any reason (sometimes I feel shy when I’m reading and not up to starting a conversation, for example), feel free to sign your comment with “whisper” and I will appreciate it but not respond!


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